Offering a foreigner's view on Korean TV and movies

Marriage Contract – First Impression

The first thought I had while watching Episode 1 was, “Lee Seo Jin must be totally enjoying this because he’s acting with actresses under 30!” The opening scene tells us a fair bit about his character, Han Ji Hoon, a restaurateur who appears to frequently have flings with young actresses/idols, aka is a playboy.

But of course he hides a painful past, being the son out of wedlock to a successful businessman and a drunkard mother. It seems that the legal wife and his half-brother Jung Hoon (Kim Young Pil) are treating him pretty well, while Mom rather make a spectacle of herself, making Ji Hoon extremely embarassed. He also appears to have a relationship previously with Jung Hoon’s fiancee Seo Na Young (Kim Yoo Ri) although it seems for now Jung Hoon is unaware of it.

Ji Hoon mistakes Kang Hye Soo (Uee) as a swindler who operates with children, when he almost knocked Hye Soo and her daughter over, and Hye Soo passed out right after shielding her daughter. I don’t like that little girl btw, because she’s so rude and full of herself (6 years old!) even though her over-protectiveness of her mom Hye Soo is sweet. Hye Soo is debt-ridden because of her late husband, and moves around way too often with her daughter, attempting to hide from the loansharks. Hye Soo also happened to apply for a kitchen position at Ji Hoon’s restaurant.

Hye Soo happened to overhear a conversation between Ji Hoon and his friend-cum-restaurant manager Park Ho Joon (Kim Kwang Gyu, why there, 3 Meals A Day reunion we have here!), as Ji Hoon asks Ho Joon to find a legal wife for him to fulfill his Mom’s wishes (who will die very soon if she doesn’t get liver transplant) and is willing to offer the amount that Hye Soo needs to repay the loansharks. Hye Soo was caught eavesdropping, and tells Ji Hoon without hesitation that she’ll marry him.

I have no idea how this is going to be a bright and cheerful drama when Ji Hoon has to deal with two women who’s dying anytime soon. I do foresee however, the hijinks between Ji Hoon and Hye Sung’s daughter Eun-seong when they’re forced to live together, especially when they started off the wrong footing. I’m pretty sure this is not going to be another Super Daddy Yeol, and I rather look forward to watch Lee Seo Jin squirm in front of little girls. The biggest question mark I had from Episode 1 was how did Eun-seong manage to grow up well, given Hye Soo appears to be pretty much a muddlehead (she actually kept walking further and further away while talking on phone, when Eun-seong was screaming “Omma! Omma!” in the middle of the street). Anyway, Show appears to have all the conventional ingredients for a melodrama, I wouldn’t be surprised if it turns out to be all weepy and melo on us, but I do hope it’ll be different.